Double Trouble
by CanisLupus4
Summary: A simple yet crucial choice changes many things. Namikaze Minato lives, and he is jinchūriki, host to the Kyūbi no Yōko.  Spoilers for chapter 500 or episode 247, and well beyond, though not being caught up is not important.
1. In Which There is an Unexpected Survivor

The barrier dissolved, and the Sandaime Hokage rushed forward, dreading what he might find.

Great fox tracks in the ground and lingering wisps of fiery red chakra were all that remained of what had wreaked devastation on Konoha. The Kyūbi no Yōko was probably not dead, though; merely neutralised.

Confirmation lay in the eight-point spiral of black symbols that marked the belly of a crying baby boy, who lay naked on a ceremonial pedestal. He was from this day forth gifted and cursed with the life of a jinchūriki – the Kyūbi's power had been sealed into him, and he would contain it as long as he lived.

A woman with long vivid red hair lay where she had fallen, blood drying on the ground around her. Her body was interposed between a giant paw print and her son. Uzumaki Kushina had done her best to protect the people she loved.

He lay flat on his back beside his wife's body, the white cloak he wore marred by dirt and blood, as was his spiky blond hair. Unlike her, his chest rose and fell gently, the movement barely perceptible at first glance. His dull green flak jacket was unzipped, and the blue shirt underneath had been pulled up to expose his belly. A seal marked his skin – identical in every way to the seal on the baby boy.


	2. In Which a Displeased Hokage Wakes Up

Everything hurt. Minato could not remember ever having been in such all-encompassing agony. As he took stock of his surroundings, though, there did not seem to be any cause for immediate worry. Almost everything was familiar – the hospital room, the IV drip, and the chakra presences of wary guards outside.

What made the scene unfamiliar was the extra table in the room, piled high with papers and scrolls, along with the presence of the Third Hokage, who sat in a chair beside the bed, his plain robes arranged neatly. Sarutobi Hiruzen regarded him with keen black eyes, his thin wrinkled face taut with worry.

Minato took a moment to sort through what he remembered. "Naruto," he eventually croaked, not being in much of a talking mood.

"Your son is safe," his predecessor assured him, as he surreptitiously wriggled his fingers and toes to make sure his limbs were still present; nothing really seemed to be wrong aside from the burning pain that refused to go away. "I can have him brought in to you in moments, but first, there is a more pressing matter to address."

The younger man was, frankly, of the opinion that few things were likely to be more important than his son, and it showed. Hiruzen frowned.

"Minato...you sealed the Kyūbi into Naruto...and yourself?"


	3. In Which Explanations are Demanded

The Yondaime Hokage nodded, and winced as the motion made his head hurt. He forced himself into a semi-upright position and managed to sip some water from the cup the Sandaime passed to him.

"Naruto is too young to have the entirety of the Kyūbi sealed into him; he simply lacks the capacity," he explained, passing back the cup before it slipped from his weak grasp. "So I split the Kyūbi's chakra, sealed the yin half into myself, and sealed the yang half into Naruto."

"Using the Eight Trigrams Sealing Style on both yourself and Naruto," Hiruzen observed. "It confirms my speculation, at least, though it raises more questions in turn. For instance, the seal allows some of the sealed chakra to seep out and mix with the host's own. Is your body capable of coping with it, and is there a chance the Kyūbi could escape?"

Minato sighed exhaustedly. "Must we discuss this now?"

In answer, the older man passed him a small mirror from the bedside table.

"We must," he replied, as Minato stared into the mirror. There was his sharp, pale face, framed by yellow bangs of hair. Instead of the familiar bright blue eyes, though, eyes with vivid purple irises and slit pupils stared back. No, not purple, but blue tainted with red.


	4. In Which Minato Thinks Depressing Things

"So much for keeping this low profile," Minato muttered, and slumped back against the headboard with a sigh, closing his eyes. It was subtly yet profoundly disturbing to see those eyes, now not quite his own.

The thought spiralled into many more. Konoha, civilians and shinobi alike, would need to be reassured. His abilities in combat would need to be reassessed.

The painful hollow in his heart deepened, the one that had been there since he completed the Hakke Fūin. Kushina and he had discussed at length the details of being the Nine-Tails' host; Minato could picture her, smiling wanly as she described the information he now needed.

There would be a funeral. He knew, simply from what little he witnessed of the demon fox's rampage, that there had been many casualties. The village would mourn all their dead together.

It would take place soon. As the Hokage, Minato's attendance was required, but he would have attended regardless. While he was feeling more miserable than he ever had during the war, he was quite aware that he had all but recovered from his chakra exhaustion by now, and that some phantom pains were not going to keep him from saying goodbye properly.

Right now, though, he just wanted to see Naruto. Sarutobi-sama could perhaps give him a general update on the state of things in Konoha, no doubt there was a medical-nin waiting to check on his well-being, and then he would feel quite justified in demanding to be left in peace, just this once.

The Fourth frowned, as he remembered something. "Biwako-sama?" he asked of the other Hokage, who shook his head, looking momentarily as tired as his age would suggest.

Minato had hoped they were only injured. "We'll mourn later," he said steadily and softly. It was a curious parallel, that both Hokage had lost their wives. "First of all, I want to meet Naruto properly." The old man smiled faintly at his persistence.


	5. In Which Everyone is Carefully Quiet

The tokubetsu jōnin walked in, a blanket-swaddled newborn in his arms. "Hokage-sama," he nodded in greeting, "and Hokage-sama."

"Your ever-present senbon is not present, Genma," Minato observed, lips quirking up in a faint smile.

"The nurses threatened disembowelment, should I persist in handling dangerous objects anywhere on the premises," Shiranui Genma replied softly with a chuckle, coming over to stand beside the bed.

Aside from the thin length of sharp metal missing from the corner of his mouth, the young man of eighteen looked well, dark brown hair framing matching eyes and his forehead protector on backwards. "Congratulations are in order, I suppose, boss – the kid has your hair."

Minato pushed himself into sitting properly upright; the aches and tiredness were becoming easier to ignore. "Naruto's asleep."

"He was fed only a while ago. I am assured that Naruto-chan has healthy lungs."

"Given that Kushina was the mother, I'm not surprised," Minato remarked in a low voice, as Genma passed Naruto to him, careful not to jostle the sleeping boy.

Every adult present suddenly went still. The guards outside glanced about nervously, alert to the tension in the air. Naruto slept on, oblivious.


	6. Where an Angry Man Seeks Answers

The bittersweet joy Minato felt at feeling Naruto's weight in his arms – Kushina should have been here – was abruptly shunted aside by a wave of rage and hunger.

He recognised the source immediately, and just had time to exchange glances with Sarutobi and Genma before fading into darkness.

When the scene before his eyes cleared, he found himself standing at an intersection of long, straight corridors. Made of grey stone and stretching into infinite darkness, they had been worn smooth and engraved with a staggering variety of words, symbols and pictures. An outsider would have found the place forbidding and cold.

Namikaze Minato strode forward, with confidence born of inexplicable familiarity.

His goal was a great cavern, of the same smooth stone as the corridors. In the cavern, a giant vivid red-orange fox loomed over him, caged and prevented from reaching him by metal bars. A pair of blood red eyes with slit pupils glared at him. The long tails shifted and waved restlessly.

"What are you doing, Kyūbi?" The Fourth's voice was dark with suppressed anger.


	7. Where an Angry Demon Replies

Black lips curled back to bare white fangs. **"Nothing much,"** the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox replied, sarcasm and menace quite evident in its tone of voice.

Minato scowled, and paced away, then back again. The demon's influence was doing little to improve his mood, which was caught somewhere between agitation and an urge to run. At least the pain was a distant feeling here. "I thought you could only significantly affect your host if he or she was under great stress or in life-threatening danger?" He had learned this from Kushina, among many things.

"**You seem quite stressed right now, Yondaime,"** the Kyūbi drawled.

"Are you going to be of any help?" Minato shot back.

The tailed beast suddenly lunged forward, one paw reaching out through a gap in the bars to claw at the man. The Fourth backed up a few steps. **"You tore me in **_**half!**_**"** the Kyūbi no Yōko howled furiously. **"My physical strength, locked away in your brat...!"**

It started to make sense. "You want to be made whole. You're yin, and you're trying to reunite with your yang chakra. Naruto's proximity is drawing you out."


	8. Where an Unhappy Compromise is Reached

"**Quite so,"** the demon fox hissed. **"You could hasten the process and let me out, if you like."**

Minato ignored the remark, being occupied with some rapid thinking. The seal had been designed such that it would fit itself to the chakra circulatory system of the host person – with a newborn baby, whose system was still developing, nothing more than a tiny trickle of the Kyūbi's power would slip through, and that only to help Naruto's chakra learn to assimilate the foreign energy. The yang half of the Kyūbi would be unable to even peek out until Naruto was old enough to mould and use chakra on a regular basis.

The yin half had less trouble, as its host was a fully-grown man and shinobi, with a chakra circulatory system to match. What this meant was that Minato would have to find a way to quell the Kyūbi's influence, or he would have to avoid being around Naruto. The latter option was simply not going to happen, if he had anything to say about it.

"Kyūbi, I should think it would be in your best interests to stop trying to get out for now."

The Nine-Tails glared at him, eyes narrowed. **"Why should I concern myself with what you want?"**

"You don't want to die. I don't either. If the others think you're getting out of my control, they'll kill me – along with you. So cooperating with me keeps you alive."

Its answering roar of rage shook the whole cavern.

The scene fragmented into darkness. Minato blinked, and found himself back in the hospital room. Not that he had left it in the first place, technically. Genma was crouched beside him, hands reaching for Naruto, while the Sandaime was on his other side, ready to make any move that might be required.

The Yondaime coughed to clear his throat. "Everything's fine," he assured them wearily. The tingling, burning pain that plagued him was back with a vengeance. "Crisis averted."


	9. Where Genma is an Astute Observer

Genma withdrew his hands, but did not move away; he was eyeing Minato speculatively. "So, your eyes change colour, and for a moment there a certain kind of red chakra was bubbling out all over you," the younger shinobi observed calmly, as though demonic power manifested in people every other day. "What happened to the Kyūbi no Yōko?"

Minato exhaled sharply, turning his gaze to Naruto. The whisker marks on his baby boy were kind of cute, actually...but would it suggest the truth to anyone? He took a slow, deep breath. "What day and time is it?"

The Sandaime glanced at the clock. "4pm...October 12." Naruto stirred, and woke, blinking blearily up at his father.

"Hello, Naruto," Minato whispered softly to his son. One of the tiny hands lifted, and he obligingly held him closer. "Genma, have the entire platoon gather in two hours. I'll explain everything. In the meantime, I assure you that the situation is under control."

The tokubetsu jōnin nodded seriously. "I have to note, boss, that this is the first time I've seen Naruto not cry the moment he wakes. Well, I'm going."

Minato turned to his predecessor. "I'll explain things from the start."

The Third Hokage grimly nodded.


	10. Where the Choice is Explained

"The birth went well," Minato began. The young father held his son, but otherwise the two Hokage sat alone in the room. "I was going to reinforce the seal." His wife had been the previous host of the Nine-Tails, just as the First Hokage's wife had been before her. The fūinjutsu that kept the demon at bay was at its weakest during childbirth, which was why Kushina had delivered Naruto at a supposedly secure location outside of the village.

"But someone broke in on us. He somehow got through the barrier, killed the ANBU guards...and snatched Naruto." Handing Naruto over to Hiruzen in exchange for pen and paper, the Yondaime sketched a rough impression of the man, a robed figure wearing an oval mask. The mask was white, had thin black horizontal flames decorating it, and had only one eye hole, for the right eye. That single visible eye had an iris with three black tomoe arranged around the pupil.

"I had to go for Naruto, and get him somewhere safe. The masked man took advantage of the moments I was gone to release the Kyūbi, place it under his control somehow, and when I returned to take Kushina away, he set the fox loose on Konoha."

"Many shinobi report that you were present in Konoha soon after the Kyūbi's appearance, and that you used a space-time barrier to warp the fox's Tailed Beast Ball away," Hiruzen put in. "The location you teleported the attack to is little more than a charred crater several dozen metres wide, by the way." Naruto started to cry.

"We won't be holding any more backwoods exercises there then." Minato took Naruto back, which turned out to be just what the baby wanted. "I did not act further at that point because the masked man reappeared, and tried to attack me; I escaped using the Hiraishin before he could do it. He followed me, and we fought."

"I injured him badly, I think, but I feel that he merely chose to retreat."

"After that, you returned to Konoha, teleported the Kyūbi away to Kushina and Naruto, and split and sealed it with her help, as I witnessed," the Third finished. "I thought you were going to use the Shiki Fūjin."

"That would have been safer, yes," Minato admitted. "I'm still not sure what effects sealing the Kyūbi into me will have. But Kushina insisted I find some way, any way to resolve matters such that I would not have to die, for Naruto's sake. Her final wish... So, what happened to Konoha while I wasn't there?"


	11. Regarding Wellbeing

The iryō-nin gave Minato a clean bill of health; in fact, the young man had been mildly surprised that the few cuts and scrapes the Fourth had picked up were all but completely healed, as was the one small but deep wound in his leg, courtesy of a piece of shrapnel. "You should still avoid doing anything strenuous for the next week, if at all possible, Yondaime-sama," the medical-nin remarked dryly. "You did come in with severe chakra exhaustion."

Minato brought up the matter of the phantom pain he was feeling throughout his body, to general puzzlement. "Your chakra pathways appear to be stressed, but I cannot say for sure," the iryō-nin stated, green fire fading from his hand.

The Hyūga medical-nin he brought in simply activated his Byakugan, arched one fine black eyebrow at what he saw, and informed Minato plainly that his chakra circulatory system was definitely very badly stressed.

"I respectfully suggest refraining from using chakra for a week, possibly two," the Hyūga told him, managing to sound humble and polite while somehow also hinting that his 'suggestion' would become a restraining order if not heeded. "Might I also recommend that Yondaime-sama not repeat the activity that placed such strain on your person?"

"But the techniques I employed were well within my scope," Minato said to Hiruzen after the medical-nin had left.

"Dealing with the Kyūbi is not generally in anyone's scope," the Third pointed out. There was a knock on the door. "I expect that's our guard platoon, waiting to hear of your grand exploits, Minato. It seems Genma's brought Naruto with him again."

"I can hear fine, thank you," Minato replied dryly. One of the nurses had taken his son away to give him his feeding. Naruto had protested this fervently, and was still protesting, apparently.


	12. Regarding Secrets

There was a long silence after Minato finished explaining everything again. Naruto did not break the silence because he was asleep in his father's arms, having had his milk.

"Iwa will piss in their pants when they find out the Yellow Flash is the Kyūbi's jinchūriki," was Genma's eventual pronouncement. The Sandaime chuckled.

"Good to know you can still crack a joke," Minato commented with a faint smile. He was still having trouble with the fact that there were only four ANBU and three tokubetsu jōnin in the room, instead of the total of twenty there should have been. The ANBU, with their masks on, were difficult to read, though the too-still postures gave them away. The other two were visibly pale; he wondered what was the greater source of fear, the Kyūbi or the masked man.

"I'll be frank and say that as of right now, I have no idea where this will go," Minato continued. "I have only a few instructions for you at present: no one else is to know that Naruto is jinchūriki." He was telling the Platoon since they were the ones who would be charged with his son's safety, while the Council, as his advisers, should and would be informed soon. The Yondaime did not intend to let Naruto run the risk of being stigmatised for being a demon's host, though, if he could help it.

"The existence of an instigator for the incident is also an S-ranked secret...and you are to kill me if I should seem about to lose control of the Kyūbi."

"That'll be suicide, boss," Genma replied without missing a beat, "but will do." There were several nervous nods behind him. "We have faith in you, though." A murmured chorus of agreement followed.

"Thank you," the Yondaime Hokage said softly.


	13. Regarding Feelings

The funeral was held the next day. No one commented aloud on the crimson-tinged eyes that the Fourth now had; today was for honouring the dead. He owed them an explanation soon, though. Konoha needed to know that they were safe.

Minato slipped away afterwards to the memorial stone, where he found the Jōnin Commander carving names into the dark, glossy surface by hand – Inuzuka Te was doing so quite literally, with a claw-tipped finger, but he was known for his precision. The white dog lying beside him lifted an ear, and wagged her tail; Te sniffed, and growled a greeting to his Hokage

"I'm calling a meeting for tomorrow afternoon," Minato told him. "Clan heads, jōnin, Council...the important ones, you know them. Arrange it; it'll be regarding the Kyūbi." The other man grunted an affirmative and carried on with his work.

He stood in contemplative silence, hands in his pockets, enjoying the feel of the afternoon sun. As he had thought, Kakashi soon arrived. Teacher and student regarded each other.

"You know Obito wouldn't like you coming here too often," Minato murmured.

"Why did Yūhi-san not let us fight?" was his last living student's flat non-reply. He wondered if _you allowed Obito to die for what he believed in_ was going through the fourteen-year-old's mind.

"Dying for what you believe in is all very well, but the village needs us to _live_ for what we believe in." Small comfort for the dead, and even less for the living, but there was little worth saying, in such moments.

"Mm... What happened to your eyes?"

"You'll hear all about it tomorrow. Perhaps the day after, if I wind up murdering the elders – that would be quite the mess to clean up."

"You're usually not so bloodthirsty, Minato-sensei."

"It's been a poor few days; shocking as it may seem, I'm not perfect."


	14. Regarding Trust

Leaving Kakashi to his habitual vigil, the Yondaime Hokage made his way to the Uchiha Clan's ancestral compound. Many of the Uchiha, especially the younger ones, did not stay there, choosing to find accommodation of their own in the village proper, but the Uchiha compound was still where the clan head and his family stayed.

Fugaku met him at the door, dressed in simple black clothes like everyone else. "Minato."

"Fugaku." War was funny like that; thus did two men become trusted comrades to each other, though separated by seven years, differing positions – once orphan and clan heir, now Hokage and clan head – and clashing personalities.

Minato was invited in for tea, and the two were seated in short order. Mikoto beat a gracefully hasty retreat after serving the tea, in response to a wail that was becoming rapidly familiar to Minato's ears. "His name is Sasuke, am I correct?" the younger man remarked, receiving a short nod. "These little reminders of new life are heartening."

"Your child's birth went well, then?" Fugaku enquired. "I would hate to know that the twenty-three Uchiha who died in the line of duty did so in vain."

Minato did not twitch. It was almost a game for them, a call-back to the early days of their acquaintance. Fugaku said crude, insensitive things, and Minato infuriated him with his cool demeanour and deadpan wit. "The many civilians who were evacuated safely are grateful, as I am. Naruto is well, though through no direct contribution of yours."

They had also learned to be honest with each other. "Your request for the Military Police to be on high alert for the duration of your absence did pay off," the clan leader acknowledged. "Where were you after the attack began?"


	15. Regarding Plans

"I got held up." Minato described almost everything as he knew it, right down to the masked man with his single visible Sharingan, and how the Kyūbi had been intentionally unleashed on Konoha. He left out the details of how the Kyūbi had been stopped.

The older man just sat in stunned silence for a moment. Minato poured a third cup of tea for both of them and waited.

"Are you telling me because you think I am innocent, or because you suspect me?" Fugaku finally commented acerbically. "Equally of note, which option does the Sandaime and the old farts think it is?" He paused. "Far more importantly, what the hell are we going to do about this masked monster?"

"The Council has not been informed yet. I figured I should rehearse my speech with you first. As for the masked man, speak of it to no one else. I need information before anything can be done, and outside of giving me every last thing you know about Uchiha Madara, there's nothing you can do at present."

"You don't seriously think it's him, do you? I know you're crazy, Minato, but this is out there, even for you. And I expect you've heard it quite a bit by now, but what did you do to your eyes?"

"New fashion statement. I'll explain tomorrow. And no, I don't think it's him, but I prefer to be careful."


	16. Concerning the Contents of Lists

The Yondaime Hokage walked back to his office instead of simply teleporting there, so he could get a good look at how things were in the village, and he was, well, not happy.

The centre of Konoha was generally devastated – that was where the masked man had summoned the Kyūbi into town; a huge trough had been ploughed from there in a straight line, with utter disregard for buildings in the way, and terminated before the foot of the Hokage Monument with barely a couple of metres to spare – that had been caused by the Nine-Tails firing the Tailed Beast Ball which Minato had blocked.

Going the other way from ground zero, a similar trough had been ploughed all the way to beyond Konoha's walls, where part of the forest had been crushed – all that had been caused by the Third Hokage, as the inevitable side effect of driving the demon fox back and out of the village. Whatever the masked man's goals were, destroying Konohagakure no Sato was obviously pretty high up on the list.

The homeless survivors were being housed in the emergency shelters, located in the cave system behind and within Hokage Mountain. Work was underway to clear the debris, the last of the bodies were being retrieved, and reconstruction would start soon, beginning with the village wall. Konoha would feel the loss of so many shinobi for some years to come, but they would recover, with some luck, and life would go on. If they got the chance to, that was.

Minato figured that the other nations knew about the Nine-Tails' attack already. At least, Kumo did; skirmishes between Konoha and Kumo-nin in the disputed northern mountains had doubled in frequency, according to the hawk-delivered messages. He wondered how they would react when word of his new status as jinchūriki reached them. Well, Kumo had the Hachibi, they would probably only be mildly concerned.

Konoha's Yellow Flash considered doing something decisive to resolve the situation with Kumo once and for all, and then shelved the plan in favour of cleaning up one mess at a time. He had a village's ruffled feathers to soothe, digging through the roots to do, and a son who did not see his father often enough. Figuring out how to channel the Kyūbi's power was not very high on the list of things he wanted to do.

The passers-by were not entirely surprised to see their Hokage vanish between one step and the next; it was a habit of many shinobi, and this _was_ a hidden village, after all. His uncharacteristic frown, though, worried them, as did the intensity of those violet eyes. There were whispers that something had their hero worried, and there were whispers that their hero was not himself, and whispers that the hero who won the war for them would have the answers once more.


	17. Concerning Suspicion Filled Devotees

Yamashiro Daifune was 43 years old, possessed gravity-defying black hair, wore wire-frame spectacles, and was noticeably taller and thinner than the Fourth Hokage, which was no mean feat, since Minato was quite decently tall and had a surprisingly slender frame. He was also the leader of the Hokage Guard Platoon, by dint of being the oldest, the most experienced – he had spent the past twenty years bouncing between jōnin-sensei and ANBU – and the one most likely to be insane.

The reason his squad mates had voted him thus had everything to do with his utter lack of eccentricity. Daifune was professional, fair, modest, and actually had a stable, happy family. Normal, though, was the new crazy, when almost every Leaf shinobi above 20 years of age – and quite a few well below – were at least slightly off-kilter.

'Off-kilter' was, Daifune thought, an accurate term to describe his superior, who apparently saw fit to discuss the S-ranked instigator of October 10 with Uchiha Fugaku. He said as much to Minato, though in a much more polite and proper manner.

"_The_ October 10, is that what they're calling it now?" Minato commented, before coming around the desk to stand in front of Daifune, the late afternoon sunlight streaming in through the windows behind him. His expression was deadly earnest.

"Crane-san" for Daifune was wearing his ANBU mask "I realise you are old enough to be my father" which he was, given the 18-year age gap "but as your Hokage, I expect you to trust my judgement." Had Daifune's disapproval been that obvious?

"Nonetheless, I appreciate your candidness and the validity of those concerns." He leaned back against his desk, looking up at his subordinate. "I don't believe Uchiha Fugaku had a hand in the Kyūbi's attack. Let me lay out the picture as I see it.

"My wife's status as the Kyūbi's jinchūriki was classified, but she was one of the Konoha-nin who were defending Uzushiogakure the day it fell, and we all know what happened. Anyone could have found out about that. Her pregnancy was not classified, and neither was the information of when Naruto was due; we merely chose to not openly talk of it.

"On the other hand, Fugaku most certainly could not have known where Kushina was giving birth. I think our masked fellow put two and two together, and came up lucky. It's either that or we have a traitor in the Platoon – unlikely."

The older man exhaled sharply. "I see your point, Hokage-sama. Then why are there ANBU detailed to watch the key Uchiha members?"

"To put it crudely, you're not my only suspicion-filled devotee to the greater good."


	18. Concerning Personal Troubles

Like most battle-hardened shinobi, the Fourth Hokage was familiar with the art of dropping off to sleep despite unpleasant circumstances. Those circumstances, though, usually did not include a persistent, pervasive pain in the body that, while not intense enough to be debilitating, was strong enough to not be easily ignored. Naruto's regular and very vocal demands for his father and for food were scarcely helping matters.

Thus, Namikaze Minato found himself awake _again_, at some ungodly hour of the night. He could sense Kasumi on the balcony outside, while Daifune was in the nursery with Naruto, who had dropped off to sleep upon finishing his latest ration of infant formula. He sighed, folded his arms behind his head, and started a basic meditative exercise for attuning himself to the chakra flow in his body.

He blinked, and found himself back in the stone cavern containing the Kyūbi. _So I thought right. This is my mind._

An annoyed growl rumbled through the room. Minato turned to look at the demon fox. "I haven't experienced any flares of your chakra since we talked," the man observed coolly. "...Thank you."

A scarlet eye stared at him for a moment. The Kyūbi gave a snort, and subsided into silence.

Minato regarded it. "I still feel your presence, though," he mused aloud, more for something to say than anything else. "Just under the surface, every time I hold Naruto...but I suppose it can't be helped. My chakra reserves have recovered far more quickly than they ever have before; that's your doing too, likely."

The bijū's long ears twitched, but it said nothing. "And whatever Hyūga-san said about overstretching myself," Minato continued, "I know my limits, and nothing I did that night should have resulted in this state of constant pain...except for this. Sealing you into me has probably produced some side effects. But what, and why?"

**"Yondaime..."** The Kyūbi sounded amused. **"Don't you know?"**


	19. Concerning Jinchūriki Pains

Red-tinged blue eyes met vivid scarlet ones. "If you know, please, do tell." Minato's voice was carefully bland. He had not thought the demon would actually offer an answer, but he would take what he could get.

**"My previous hosts differed greatly from you,"** the tailed beast drawled. **"Kushina was chosen for that difference. Even the child that holds my sundered half may have a little of that distinguishing difference. Can you guess, Yondaime?"**

Minato frowned. "Kushina was chosen for the special properties of her chakra, properties rare even amongst her clan...Uzumaki. Mito and Kushina were Uzumaki, and Naruto has their blood.

"The Uzumaki Clan is distinguished by its members' skills with fūinjutsu, naturally high levels of chakra...I realise I'm no powerhouse, especially compared to the Uzumaki, but what does that have to do with the current situation?"

**"I am a living mass of malevolent chakra,"** the Nine-Tails said patiently, as though speaking to a particularly slow-witted child. **"Mito and Kushina had bodies inherently suited to containing and channelling large amounts of chakra. You, though..."**

"My body is reacting adversely to your presence, because it's not nearly as suitable for hosting high levels of chakra."

**"Took you long enough, Yondaime,"** the Kyūbi hissed, grinning.

Minato scowled. He had guessed at part of the problem himself, that his chakra had yet to adapt to the presence of the demon's foreign chakra, but the idea that he was simply an unsuitable choice of host had escaped him. Large chakra reserves, too, would help suppress the Nine-Tails, and his wife had never had the fox lurking just beneath the skin like it did with him.

Kushina's chakra, he recalled, had been particularly dense and strong with Uzumaki vitality, more than capable of pressing back against the Kyūbi's power. It had also been the reason for her unique chakra chain constructs and her skill with kekkai ninjutsu, barrier techniques – chakra did not easily take a tangible form, which was why his Rasengan and the Hyūga Clan's Kaiten both included rotation, and why any chakra construct that was visible was noteworthy in strength.

Her death was not just a great loss to himself personally, but to Konoha as well.

Wordlessly, he turned and walked away, striding down the stone corridors. The cold cutting wind of his pain sang through the hallways, and the Nine-Tails fell silent.


	20. Concerning Duties

Genma and Raidō came to relieve Daifune and Kasumi at 6am. There should have been a full four-man squad guarding the Yondaime at any given time, at the very least, but the Kyūbi attack had left them short-staffed, and ANBU was being spread thin to cover all their duties. Besides, no one actually expected danger in the heart of the village – Monday's incident notwithstanding – and the Fourth's ability to deal with any potential threat far exceeded whatever his guards could do. It was merely the principle of the thing.

Genma was feeling unusually sceptical about whether or not his Hokage could in fact handle himself, since if anything the man looked like he could use a lot more sleep.

Having spent the previous few days watching Naruto, the tokubetsu jōnin had been forcibly familiarised with the newborn's needs, and thus had no trouble helping out. Being a Hokage's bodyguard was becoming less glamorous by the day, but the prevailing opinion among its members was that there was duty, and then there was privilege. Shiranui Genma considered it an honour to be trusted with handling Naruto, thank you very much, even if it sometimes literally reeked something awful.

Breakfast was particularly awkward, since Kushina was no longer around to prepare the food, Naruto kicked up a fuss for reasons they could not figure out, Minato was laying out his schedule for the day to Raidō, worrying about his son, and being uncharacteristically grumpy. Raidō, who was not very comfortable with handling volatile people in non-combat situations, was getting a little flustered.

Genma just smirked, started making plans, and contemplated the notion of asking Sandaime-sama to babysit.


	21. Discussing Unhappy Advisers

Utatane Koharu, according to her long-time comrade Homura, existed perpetually in a state of displeasure. She rarely disputed this observation.

Today seemed unlikely to be an exception.

"What were you thinking?"

The Councillors sat in a secure but comfortable sitting room that was situated just down the hall from the Hokage's office. True to Namikaze Minato's flexible, unorthodox approach to things, said room did duty as audience chamber and general workplace far more often than his actual office, complete with shelves of scrolls and a tri-pronged kunai lying on a side table. Early morning sunlight shone through the windows.

Seated across from them, clothed in white and red, the Yondaime Hokage levelled a look at his advisers. The Kyūbi no Yōko seemed to stare out at them from within him. Logically, Koharu knew that he would not be sitting there so calmly if the Nine-Tails had any say, but October 10 was far too fresh in their minds.

"What was I thinking? What do you think I ought to have done?" The young man's voice was a touch more acerbic than they were accustomed to hearing.

"Use a different host," Homura snapped from where he sat beside her. "Anyone other than the reigning Hokage!"

"You place the entire village at risk with this," she agreed. "Who would stop you, should the demon gain control? You were the one who dealt with it, that night, but now you are the threat. Who is going to replace you, if and when it comes to that?"


	22. Discussing Reactions Expected and Not

Under the twin baleful glares of his advisers, the Yondaime Hokage merely frowned, and leaned back in his seat with a sigh. That behaviour was in line with how Minato reacted every time Koharu and Homura suggested a course of action that he could not reconcile with his moral code.

To be entirely honest, a tiny part of Koharu had expected a rage more characteristic of the Kyūbi.

"Jiraiya-sensei has the key to the seal," the young Hokage told them, his face now a composed mask, a hint of steel glinting in the violet eyes. "I expect him to be back in town shortly, and he'll likely remain for quite a while. I will consider candidates for instruction in fūinjutsu, as well as potential successors. Most importantly, too, it is worth noting that the demon fox cannot spontaneously break out; I know what I am capable of, and my seal will not simply fail."

"Fine," Koharu murmured reluctantly. Idealistic he might be, but she was familiar enough with Minato's methods to know that he would always have a backup plan, or would devise one shortly if he did not.

Homura nodded. "Now, about this masked Uchiha-"

"He possessed a Sharingan," the Fourth cut in sharply. "This is not proof that he is Uchiha, as Kakashi can attest."

"But-" Koharu started.

"They-" Homura began at the same time.

"-were out patrolling the streets in full force because I asked them to," Namikaze Minato said, his words burning with a quiet force. "Those prideful, ambitious, untrustworthy Uchiha – yes, I know what you think of them – they died to ensure hundreds of civilians reached safety, during that night."

"We are short-staffed," the Fourth stated frankly, when no reply was forthcoming. "Unless there are half a dozen more ANBU squads I don't know about, keeping the village secure from more ordinary threats takes priority over a single S-ranked shinobi. I'm not sure ANBU would be capable of tracking down and spying on this masked man, actually."

"Danzō has sources of information that could help," Koharu eventually said.

"I might have a word with him." The talk turned to other matters, even as she wondered at the odd, grim look the Yondaime had worn when noting her suggestion.


	23. Discussing Onesided Communications

"That went well," Genma commented. "Once the uproar died down and you clarified matters, that is." It was a little past 6pm, and Minato was working his way through paperwork of varying degrees of importance. The Sandaime sat beside the desk, Naruto in his arms, entirely too pleased about not having to handle mission reports anymore – or explain to a gathering of entirely too high-strung jōnin and clan leaders that their Yellow Flash was now a demon container.

"Mm." Minato stamped his seal on several papers in quick succession, handing the lot off to a waiting runner.

"I think by tomorrow, the entire village will be thinking of you as our great hero, sacrificing yourself to eternal combat with the Kyūbi for our sakes; actually, you already are a great hero to them, this is just another feat on the list."

"Mm." Finishing off a short reply to a request from the Academy, Minato set the letter aside and jotted something down in a thin notebook.

Genma exchanged a glance with the Third. "The Sandaime would like to suggest that you move into the Hokage Residence, and the Hokage Guard Platoon would like to strongly recommend it; it would be easier to guard both of you that way."

"Mm." An Uchiha Genma only recognised by sight came in, wearing the insignia of the Military Police and bearing a report scroll, which he handed to Minato along with a folded sheet of paper. Minato raised an eyebrow at the note, dismissing the Uchiha with a wave of his hand.

"ANBU Commander Tiger would like to inform you that the files you requested will be ready in two days. Documents on the first two subjects on the list have been located, however, and can be made available immediately."

"Mm." A stack of scrolls were sent off with a second runner.

"The Guard Platoon would like you to pay for Daifune's birthday party next week."

"No I won't. I'll buy a round of drinks, but that's it."

"Da-"

"And don't swear in front of my boy."


	24. Discussing Drowning Fire

He had sorted most of the things in the apartment – going into storage, to be given away, or to be moved to the Residence. Daifune was in the kitchen, trying to explain infant care to Kasumi – Daifune's summoned creatures were keeping a lookout, and they had very keen senses. Naruto was asleep for now – less fitfully than what the newborn's caretakers had described to him.

At least one of them was getting some sleep.

Minato was slumped in an armchair beside the cot, watching his baby boy sleep. His mind was all but exhausted – from a certain point of view; genius never stopped ticking along, not really – yet he was feeling restless. Apparently, whatever the iryō-nin thought, Minato was physically hale, and not engaging in his daily training was making him antsy.

Then again, he was not feeling well at all. Given time to sit back and think, the weight of everything was rather noticeable. A lurching, hollow falling in his abdomen and a coldness clenching tight around his heart, that was fury, fear and sorrow bordering on despair, tangled into each other.

The masked man – the wraith, who had shrugged off mortal wounds – cast a shadow, one enough to dim even the fire's shadow.

He missed her; simple words for such complex, painful feelings.

Love, hope, and warm _rightness_ were what Naruto's presence – existence – gave him. Through no fault of the son, and all of his father's, his proximity also invoked a cold fire that burned down into his very bones. The coals had never left, since he woke; they had a tendency to flare up, though.

If he allowed himself to dwell on any of these for too long, he thought he might drown. Men had been drowned by lesser weights.

But he was Minato, who had loved a girl – a woman people were afraid to like. He was Konoha no Kiiroi Senkō, who had turned the tide of a war singlehandedly. He was Namikaze, who had reconciled compassion with ruthlessness. He was the Yondaime Hokage, who had promised himself that nothing would stand in the way of what he had to do, and what he had to do was always clear to him.

Naruto woke, and cried because he was hungry. Daifune soon brought in the bottle, and after the baby had his fill, he fell asleep once more.

He did not want to leave his son, so, without tasks to hand, he settled himself down comfortably, turned his mind inward, and sought the Kyūbi, to learn from it, about it.


	25. Discussing Pieces of the Picture

In his mindscape, Minato paused to examine the grey stone walls. The intricate carvings refused to resolve into coherent images or legible writing, teasing the edges of his vision with spidery symbols, stylised leaves, spirals, and graceful curves like hair flowing in wind.

Accepting the feelings they invoked and setting it all aside, he walked into the cavern.

"**Back so soon, Yondaime,"** the Kyūbi hissed from behind its bars.

"Know thy enemy," the man replied. "In the interest of protecting my people, I need to know more about you, and talking to you is as good a way as any."

The demon fox snorted. **"So what is it?"**

"Things are not adding up," Minato remarked, his mood contemplative. "I utilised the Hiraishin yesterday and today – perfect chakra control that should be beyond my reach, given the supposed state of my chakra coils. Also, if I am in fact quite healthy, then what is the source of the pain?"

It chuckled, briefly flashing white fangs. **"Neither I nor the white-eyed human lied, Yondaime. You merely lack the full picture."**

"You were watching when I was talking to the Hyūga medical-nin?" he asked, bland tone belying his utter shock at the idea.

The Kyūbi no Yōko sniffed disdainfully. **"Of course I was watching. I am always watching."**


	26. Speaking of Blood and Bone

"How?" Minato enquired. "Kushina never mentioned this – isn't the seal supposed to..."

"**She never asked,"** it remarked with a laugh. **"You know nothing of me, Yondaime. I told you, I am an entity comprised of power. I **_**am**_** the dark chakra trickling through your veins; you could no more separate it from me than you can be separated from your blood and bone. Too weak to act"** here the demon snarled **"but still part of my consciousness."**

The man puzzled over that for a moment. The comparison seemed invalid at first – a person could lose blood, even limbs, without dying – but had Minato not done the equivalent to the Nine-Tails, splitting its power in two?

Phrasing the deed in such words, weakening – crippling – a living being, made it oddly uncomfortable; but it was a conundrum for another day.

"So, you are the one directly causing me...discomfort?"

It grinned. **"While I would enjoy tearing you apart, no, I am not actively causing your agony. It is the inevitable side effect of harbouring me, being in conflict with me, without the benefits of chakra reserves sufficiently sizable to dampen my influence."**

"Being in conflict with you...so this pain is not going to fade, is it?"

The fox snickered. **"Not likely, no."**

"You're enjoying this, aren't you."

Malevolent laughter rang in the Fourth Hokage's ears as he banished the scene from his mind. Shaking his head, he glanced at the clock. Barely a minute had gone by; almost a whole hour to think on what he had learned before Naruto woke once more.


	27. Speaking of Health and Healing

The Hyūga iryō-nin who had briefly examined Minato a few days prior had apparently been assigned to the Yondaime's case, as he was the only person present when Minato entered the private consultation room – patient confidentiality was even more important for the Hokage than normal shinobi, who were already deeply concerned about such issues.

Hyūga Hitatsu, Minato observed, looked very awake for 6.48am in the morning. Garbed in crisp white, bandages wrapped tight around the cuffs of his sleeves, an ivory bead securing one lock of dark chocolate hair which hung beside his face, the cursed seal pale green on cream skin, and fine features impassive, the man offered a short but polite greeting before bluntly directing him to sit down and stay still.

"This is...unusual," Hitatsu admitted after a long moment. With the veins near his temples protruding alarmingly – the only visible indicator of an activated Byakugan – and the featureless white eyes staring, he looked intimidating to the inexperienced.

"Explain." The Fourth's expression was equally steady and sharp.

The medical-nin sat down across from him, looking thoughtful. "Imagine a plastic tube like a water hose. This should suffice for a crude but accurate comparison to your chakra coils.

"Now imagine it punctured in places it should not be, and half-melted. That was the state of your chakra coils when I examined you previously, Yondaime-sama.

"Then, imagine it quite thoroughly repaired with the use of waterproof tape. That is how it has healed - not a pretty job, but perfectly functional, and in such a short time too."

The Kyūbi, again, Minato realised. "I assume that's not all?"

Hitatsu deactivated his dōjutsu, and met his leader's gaze solemnly. "It will not last," the Hyūga said softly. "I would not expect to live to a ripe old age with such a body."

That was not so bad; ninja did not enter the profession expecting to retire.

"A shinobi of your age, with such a level of injury sustained, I would usually estimate as being able to lead a normal life, run missions and so on, for up to ten years before his body's premature aging compels him to retire.

"In your situation, Yondaime-sama...were I a gambler, I should not dare place a bet on any estimation of your life expectancy. You may find that your body cannot see you through another S-ranked mission, or you may find that the source of your remarkable recovery will allow you another thirty years of active duty."

That was...not so good.


	28. Speaking of Paperwork and Priorities

"Helping someone to move house? Really?" a kid with messy brown hair and multiple gauze pads stuck on his face groaned.

"Shut up, Kotetsu," one of his teammates hissed under his breath, a boy with straight dark hair who wore his forehead protector like a bandanna. He elbowed the other boy sharply, adding, "And show some respect to our Hokage. Do you even know who that is?"

Minato suppressed a grin. He was wearing his jōnin attire, and he was not actually manning the mission assignment desk – he had delegated that to Sandaime for today - merely dropping in to see how things were going. The children's sensei, one Aburame Shibi, came forward to take the mission scroll from one of the chūnin, with a murmured apology for his student's behaviour.

The Third waved it off with a chuckle, just as Kotetsu stuck his hand up to catch their attention. "But lugging around stuff is still boring, no offense, Hokage-sama."

Kotetsu's teammates visibly winced behind him. Minato stepped forward to lock gazes with the boy, still smiling amiably. "Paperwork is boring too, Kotetsu-kun, but I have to do it, because it's important to the village, and because I'm paid to do it."

The boy's teammates chuckled nervously, while Kotetsu frowned as he thought, then nodded in agreement, unfazed by Minato's odd eyes. Likely, no one had told the kid about the demon-host thing; discounting that factor, Konoha had seen more exotic sights in its time, including two clans of dōjutsu users.

He nearly jumped a foot into the air when Minato abruptly jabbed a finger at him. "And no matter how boring you think it is, Kotetsu-kun, you will do it carefully and properly, because the client is a very important person." Minato's friendly smile was still intact, and made quite a contrast with his tone of absolute authority.

"Who's the client?" Kotetsu squeaked.

Shibi had opened the mission scroll and read it. "The client is Yondaime Hokage-sama."

Minato reflected that he had been entirely too amused about seeing Kotetsu's face take on an interesting mixture of exhilaration and terror.


	29. Speaking of Training and Trust

It was sometime past eight in the morning; Fugaku and Mikoto were alone, sparring in one of the compound's training fields. Both were clothed in simple dark blue, wielding a tantō each, blood red and night black flashing in their eyes as they danced and wove around each other.

"Shisui is only nine," Mikoto hissed, as she lunged in a fluid strike, "yet even he has noticed the ANBU guards – they want us to know they are there, watching. Of course the clan is uneasy."

There, Fugaku thought, was the reason he had married her, when any Uchiha woman that was not too closely related would have been a fit match. This keen, fearsome jōnin was the one he loved (as well as the gentle lady she seemed to be). Dodging, and sweeping his blade in a great slash, the clan head made to reply. "I will speak to the Hokage-"

"ANBU answer to the Hokage alone," she reminded him, skilfully deflecting and thrusting. "Have you ever thought that you might not know the Yondaime as well as you think?"

He frowned as he parried, side-stepping around – to see a young man in standard Konoha-nin attire and vest waiting on the edge of the field. The straight brown hair and senbon in mouth were familiar; one of Minato's 'guards'.

In unison, husband and wife took a step back from each other. Fugaku approached the young man, stopping before him with expectant silence.

"He's too busy to have you over to talk," the man said flippantly, senbon bobbing up and down as he talked. "Yondaime-sama has more important and urgent things to tend to. But he doesn't want you to think he's not concerned, so, here." He held out a small message scroll to Fugaku.

"It shouldn't take too long to get back," he continued idly, as the clan head stared at him. Almost too idly, the Uchiha realised, as the guard turned to stroll off. He opened the scroll immediately.

The first thing that met his eyes was a familiar seal inscribed on the paper. The second was a note in neat writing:

_Reverse whatever Genma says._

Which meant, he realised, that nothing was more important than what they were discussing, Minato wanted people to think he wasn't concerned, and would be arriving in a while. Fugaku glanced up to see Genma smirk at him, and back down at the Hiraishin seal. The pieces fell into place, and they were worrying.


	30. Speaking of Secrets and Seemings

Fugaku was re-examining the engraved tablet, Sharingan active – more for something to do than any real purpose – when Minato spoke behind him.

"I didn't know there was a secret room under the Naka Shrine."

Startled, he spun around, to see his friend – his eyes revealed the familiar shadowy gold of Minato's chakra, revealed a dried blood-coloured power tangled into and around the gold like a shroud of strangling vines, and he thought, for an instant, that he could hear the terrifying roar of the Kyūbi no Yōko, its killer intent chilling him to the core.

"Fugaku, relax." The quiet voice caught his attention, and he calmed marginally. The Yondaime remained where he stood, beside the open message scroll on the floor, seemingly unfazed. "It can't get out. It just...rattled the cage."

He could see that now, especially when he stepped closer and Minato obligingly placed one hand in his. Dark gold lines stretched around and across, interlocking with and overlaying the Kyūbi's chakra to form a lattice enclosing it – the seal, invisible to mundane eyes, and even to dōjutsu, if the user did not know to look for it.

"You're tied to it now," the Uchiha murmured absently, mesmerised by the contrast of burning malice and warm, firm will, all hidden beneath skin that looked as it always had. "Like conjoined twins; if it were ever torn out, you would die."

"That is what happened to Kushina, yes," Minato told him.

"I still can't believe you didn't tell me," he complained. He had not known, until the man had mentioned it the day before, while telling him of the masked menace. "And I thought she was just that scary a woman."

"Would it have made a difference?"

"Well, no, I guess." Fugaku shrugged. He deactivated his Sharingan, and now all he saw was a tired young man with haunted eyes. "You look like hell, Minato."

"Here, or here?" the other man replied, indicating first the shadows under his eyes, then his eerie slit-pupil gaze. Already he missed the cheerful azure those irises had been.

"Both," he answered bluntly.

"It can't be helped," the Fourth said dismissively. "Any more secret clan knowledge to share with me, or shall we get down to business?"

"Secret clan knowledge _is_ the business."


	31. About Metaphors and the Mangekyō

Sitting down across from him, Minato leaned back against the stone wall with a tired sigh that reminded... Damn it all, Fugaku had not fought one war to come home to another.

"First order of business," he began briskly, trying to put aside the grim thoughts – oh, who was he kidding; frying pan, fire, rock, hard place, nothing but dark matters. "I know how your masked man could control the Kyūbi. He used the Sharingan's hypnotic powers."

"I knew Kushina, who knew Mito, who saw Madara do it first. Tell me something new."

"I'm supposed to be the sarcastic one. Anyway, regarding Madara, here's something you definitely didn't know about: the Sharingan can 'evolve' and gain additional powers. Madara was the one who discovered that, him and his younger brother Izuna, back in their day."

"You're right, I didn't know that. Why am I only hearing this now?"

"Because this is secret clan knowledge, not to mention serious dirty laundry we don't like to air. It was one thing for Madara and Izuna to use their vastly greater battle prowess to take control of the clan and put us on even footing with the Senju, another thing entirely to find out the Mangekyō Sharingan gradually causes deterioration of eyesight, eventually blindness – and that Madara took his sibling's eyes to cure his ailment."

Minato's politely incredulous look prompted Fugaku to roll his eyes. "Merging the power of two compatible pairs of Sharingan permanently eliminated the problem, according to the ancient stone tablet of secret knowledge there. No, it doesn't make sense, yes, Madara is a bloody bastard, and I'm just the messenger."

"Mm." His annoying blond-haired friend had what Fugaku thought of as that strange, slightly deranged smile he wore when contemplating things like the potential body count of a new jutsu, as well as the narrowed eyes of a hunter smelling blood. "And nobody in the clan has since tried to get hold of the Mangekyō?"

Fugaku could not quite manage to keep the dark scowl off his face. "The tablet – no, I don't have other sources of information beyond the clan records, which cross-refer well enough – the tablet claims that the Mangekyō awakens when you experience the pain of killing one who is closest to your heart.

"For obvious reasons, the ones who tried to do this killed their own kin, and didn't succeed, also for obvious reasons. They got executed for their trouble, and nobody's attempted or succeeded in recent memory. Not that anyone would trust our word on that, yes?"

There. The cat was out of the bag.


	32. About a Hawk and a Shock

Despite himself, he was watching the Hokage's reaction carefully.

There was no surprise, but the Yondaime's features softened slightly – in understanding? Sympathy? – before all emotion vanished behind a cool, remote façade.

Fugaku smoothed his own expression over into bland impassiveness. Firelight from the lamps danced in sharp contrast to the stillness.

"I gave no command to those ANBU watchers." The voice of the Fourth was low and far too calm. "I do not recognise those men, even though they must be our own, or Konoha would long since have fallen. I have chosen not to confront them yet, because if I am seen to lack control over what should be my own men, the doubt and suspicion would undermine the continued smooth functioning of all Konoha."

A sudden thought struck Fugaku: Minato customarily trusted no one with everything, yet he was now choosing to entrust him with more than what had already been given just two days prior, no small thing in itself.

"The old war hawk is behind it, naturally," Minato continued. "The Sandaime has long been aware that Root was never disbanded, but has turned a blind eye to what Danzō is doing, in the belief that he serves the village as loyally as any of us. I've been doing the same, since I have the aftermath of a war to deal with. Now, however, the situation is dire, and if anything he seems to be increasingly at cross-purposes with me. I obviously never will find the time to sort him out properly, so I may as well make time, and get it over with. I need his resources, I need him to stop trying to get me out of his way, and I need him to stop trying to evict the Uchiha like unwanted feral cats."

He discarded thoughts of pithy replies, questions and a building headache. "The Uchiha Clan is ever at your service, Hokage-sama...as I am."

Minato nodded thoughtfully. "The roots need to be found before I can decide what to do. I will need the more level-headed shinobi of your clan for that. Also, I have other concerns...would you object terribly to being a possible candidate for Godaime Hokage?"

There was a very long silence. "Yes, of course I object," he all but shouted, once he remembered how his vocal cords were supposed to work. "What? Why? You're not supposed to start thinking about a replacement for decades!"


	33. About Strange Interactions

Genma strolled nonchalantly up to where Fugaku sat leaning against a tree, hands in pockets. The Uchiha was staring across the training field, where Minato was engaged in a taijutsu-only sparring match with his former sensei and the other two Hokage candidates. The setting sun cast a warm golden glow on everything.

"Hello again, Uchiha-sama," the special jōnin said cheerfully, flopping down casually across from him. "It's amusing, isn't it, how Jiraiya-sama can't keep up with his own former student. How did the two meetings go?"

"Genma-san," the clan leader replied, giving a mere shrug to the question.

"Relax," Genma told Fugaku. "I know he was naming you a potential successor, this morning. I'd have loved to see the Council's faces when they got the news. Did Minato's safe house get destroyed in the ensuing uproar?"

The other man snorted. "Of course not; they went into shock when I told them I don't want the job. Sandaime didn't indicate an opinion either way, just smoked his pipe."

"What did Shikaku and Te say?" the younger probed, turning to watch Minato execute complex side-steps and twists that led to the Inuzuka crashing into his hound.

"Am I supposed to be talking to you about this?" Fugaku answered, his tone oddly bland.

"You talk back, and you don't give away stuff carelessly," Genma observed with a pleased hum. His bright gaze was back on the older man. "I see why Minato wants you."

Fugaku's expression sharpened into cool focus. "Are you evaluating me?"

"Yes and no," he replied earnestly. "Call it curiosity, I suppose."

All traces of levity abruptly disappeared from Genma's face. "Look, Sandaime-sama trusts us to watch his back." His voice was quiet and flat. "Minato trusts each of us with his life. There is a subtle difference."

The older man nodded cautiously. "Some of us don't trust you," Genma told him with a sardonic smirk. "I name no names. But, ultimately...to put it poetically, we swore that the will of the Fourth Hokage is our guiding fire, and we are but his shadow. What we know, Minato knows, and if he decides it is not to be known, we know nothing, even if we do."

"And if he says 'trust the Uchiha', you do?"

"Quite right, Uchiha-sama. Now, regarding the matter of dealing with the unauthorised surveillance on your clan, we need to settle certain details..."


	34. About Working and Sleeping Arrangements

Minato was sitting at a low table in the living area of the Hokage Residence, inscribing the Hiraishin seal marker on squares of thick brown paper; he ignored the sudden appearance of Daifune, Kasumi and Raidō in favour of smoothly completing a line of black symbols. "What took so long?"

"Apologies, Hokage-sama," Daifune replied, even though there had been no hint of rebuke in the question, only mild curiosity. "Genma suggested we get arrested for involvement in a bar brawl, in order to speak with the Uchiha in the privacy of the police station without attracting undue attention from Root operatives."

"They probably believe the Police only wanted to cause you some petty inconvenience," Minato agreed with a chuckle. "Well?"

"Fugaku-san has the list of suitable Uchiha on active service ready for you," the Platoon leader answered obediently, handing over a scroll. "The recommendation is that these individuals will opt for easier missions and duties than they usually would tomorrow, and dedicate their off-duty hours to the investigation on Root. Eyewitness accounts and Tiger's assistance have helped identify which ANBU members belong to Root."

The Yondaime gave the scroll contents a quick look, raising an eyebrow as he did so. "I would improve upon that recommendation by suggesting he work with Te on arranging for missions that coincide with certain target locations. And my ANBU commander should not feel that he needs to pull all-nighters to give me every last scrap of data one day ahead of schedule. When I require it urgently, I will say so."

"With all due respect, Minato-sama," Daifune stated quietly, "you need sleep too."

"Yes, I do," the young Hokage said, inclining his head in acknowledgement. "We – Kushina and I" he did not quite hide a pained grimace "had agreed...we would have taken turns to stay up...I shall see if Jiraiya-sensei is willing to put me up for a couple nights. Naruto seems to like you well enough, at least."

He sorted through the things on the table, sliding scrolls onto shelves and tools into drawers. "Shikaku and Fugaku should have the details of the operation well in hand by tomorrow; I will look over it tomorrow, before they commence, and see how I should add myself into the equation. If Danzō decides not to raise a fuss, an additional night's sleep before facing him will be welcome."

Standing, Minato eyed his subordinates. "I know my limits," he remarked archly. "Stop gaping." The Fourth Hokage vanished to the sound of a disbelieving snort.


	35. About Jiraiya and Minato's Priorities

Standing in the small, somewhat dusty living room of his apartment, the extremely tall man with a mane of spiky white hair eyed his two visitors critically. "I am Jiraiya of the Sannin!" he declared with his usual over-the-top showmanship. "Are you insulting me?"

Minato just smiled at his sensei's faux injured dignity. The bear-masked ANBU operative stepped forward from her position behind him. "Certainly not, Jiraiya-sama," Kasumi said politely. "However, the Hokage Guard Platoon must carry out its duties, regardless." As it was, they had already compromised, freeing Daifune to attend to other matters.

"Of course," the legendary sage answered gallantly. "A gentleman should always accommodate the ladies. As for you" he rounded on his former student "you're always welcome, Minato." The tone was gruff and affectionate, worry underscoring it. His next words lost most of their softness in favour of emphasizing his concern. "What's going on?"

As Kasumi exited the apartment to take up watch outside, the young man dropped into the nearest seat. Despite the unguarded relief and tiredness in his slumped figure, his voice bore a sarcastic edge. "You'll have to be more specific, sensei."

"Everything," the older man exclaimed. "Why are you choosing successors, when they are plainly not suitable to be Kage? What's with all those precautions just for discussing things with the Council and the Uchiha? What are we going to do about this masked man? And why, for goodness sake, did you have to make Naruto a jinchūriki?"

Minato just stared at him, expression hollow. "Because I had to?"

Jiraiya sighed, almost deflating as he let go of his questions. "You look exhausted," he informed him, then pointed at the door to his bedroom. "Go to bed, Minato. I'll still be here for you to talk to when you wake up. An old man's worries can wait."

"That wasn't everything," was the ominous retort, punctuated with a yawn. "Thank you, sensei. Goodnight."


	36. Countering Bigotry and Ignorance

Late at night, the Platoon gathered in the Hokage Residence's living room for an impromptu meeting; they stood, leaned against a wall or sat, according to their preferences. "Alright," Daifune stated briskly, "now that everyone except Kasumi is here, settle down. Our first concern: Uchiha Fugaku, Nara Shikaku and Inuzuka Te have ostensibly been named as potential candidates for Hokage. Discuss."

The only other member who was standing wore his customary expression of distaste. "Involving the Uchiha will not end well," the young man with close-cropped raven-blue hair said darkly.

"They're not actually going to succeed, Senri, so your bigoted heart can rest in peace," Genma commented from where he sat, leaning back on the low table. "For one, Fugaku pointed out, and I agree with him, that none of them are going to defeat Minato in a sparring session anytime soon. For another, these guys are meant to be a somewhat different kind of backup plan. The succession question was just an entrance exam."

"In what capacity?" Raidō enquired, puzzled. "If you happen to know, that is."

"Fūinjutsu," his partner replied. "The heavyweight stuff, as opposed to our playing around, if all goes as hoped." Raidō's confused expression did not change.

Senri sighed. "What Genma cannot be bothered to explain properly," he informed the rest, "is that the Fourth intends to teach them sealing techniques, so that they might be able to contain the Kyūbi, should it become necessary. Assuming" the ANBU member placed a delicate stress on the word "that Uchiha Fugaku can be trusted, the Yondaime likely intends for him to use the Sharingan to assist in such an endeavour."

"That assumes that Fugaku-san knows how to apply his eyes in such a manner," Daifune noted, "as well as that any of them will have more luck mastering fūinjutsu than we did."

"Why Inuzuka-sama and Nara-sama, though?" Raidō wondered. "They have sharp minds and attention to detail, yes, but why not Minato-sama's own student?"

"Whoever said Minato wasn't bringing Kakashi into this?" Genma remarked. "It's just that he needs a few relatively sane adults on the case too, so if he drops dead prematurely-"

"If he what?" a few of the Platoon exclaimed simultaneously.

"What do you people do with your free time?" Genma said incredulously. "And keep your voices down- oh, too late. Look, go to the hospital, have Hyūga Hitatsu show you Minato's records, get yourselves up-to-date on stuff you should already know; I'll be here, taking care of the baby you woke up."


	37. Countering Fools and Frustrations

It was only just past lunchtime, but Shimura Danzō was already seating himself at his desk with a plain, well-worn book, an ink pen, and a cup of hot tea. He sighed, taking a moment to inhale the scent of the tea, before picking up the pen and considering the blank page of his journal. After some silent thought, the old man began writing.

_I had believed that the Fourth Hokage merely intended to follow his predecessor's example in allowing Root to act as it needs to,_ Danzō mused, reading his words as he wrote them down, neat columns of black characters. Keeping journals was a good way of organising his thoughts. _It seems, unfortunately, that Namikaze Minato has merely previously chosen to tolerate our activity, and no longer wishes to do so._

_Those of my agents which have escaped detection tell me that certain members of the Military Police, with the proper warrants signed by the Hokage, are quietly moving to detain suspected Root operatives, as well as locate and search facilities connected to us._

_The Fourth has always been foolishly well-disposed towards the Uchiha Clan, but I had not thought their influence over him was such that he would move against Root so thoroughly; no doubt he intends to disband it and remove what weight I still carry in the system. He will be the death of us all, in so many ways: the jinchūriki question, for one._

_That Minato will not allow his son to be guarded as he should be is a lesser concern for now; the younger jinchūriki appears to be quite stable, which cannot be said for the older. He ought to remove himself before something unfortunate should happen, yet such an action seems unlikely, and it would be difficult for me to attempt to remove him._

He resisted the urge to grit his teeth in frustration. _Withdrawing to a more favourable locale to reassess the situation from there is also an unwise course of action; the Fourth, however misguided, is capable, and such preparations as will be necessary are certain to draw the attention of his people, especially since one agent was successfully shadowed as he returned to our main base of operations._

_Koharu and Homura are backing Minato's decisions, such as they are, so no assistance will be forthcoming from them. Orochimaru returned from his mission this morning, having been away for the past week; a small blessing, as it meant that he could not take advantage of the immediate fallout from the Kyūbi's attack. His assistance would be helpful, but whether he will choose to do so is hard to predict._

_Loath as I am to admit it, it seems I will have to wait for Minato's next move, and ready myself to deal with any eventuality._


	38. Countering Initiative

Despite the respectable height difference between the seated Minato and the still-standing Fugaku, the Uchiha nonetheless had to resist scowling or cringing in response to the sharp gaze being directed his way.

"You interrogated the Root operatives?" At least the Hokage's voice was mild in tone.

"Yes, and no," the police chief replied with a faint grimace. "Whoever trained them did something to them; the three we talked to are...empty. No fear, no anger, just... We tried the simpler genjutsu, but it had no impact, and I don't think the T&I people would have gotten anything if we had gone that far, either. There's nothing to break inside of them."

The Yondaime was doing a respectable impression of his stone visage on the Monument.

"Shikaku called in his Yamanaka teammate, who kindly spent half the afternoon helping us," Fugaku hastened to explain. "They still have minds that can be searched, and we got some very interesting information that is all in the file, but it will suffice to note that you could probably have the person who gave those orders executed for treason."

"I expected so," the Hokage muttered. "No, it's not that. The Root agents have been taught to be 'true shinobi', following the rules. They have killed their emotions."

"Making them the only people stupid enough to have taken the rules seriously," the Uchiha remarked scathingly, voicing for Minato his unspoken dislike of the concept. "Or just their leader, I suppose. But that is not what concerns you right now, is it?"

"Can these shinobi be effective long-term infiltrators?"

"We performed cursory searches of their homes," Fugaku replied slowly, thinking through his answer. "They seemed those of regular ninja, plain and practical, few ornamental objects or personal items, tools hidden in all the usual spots. But someone who knows what he is looking for would notice that the ornaments are generic and of no perceivable value, that there are apparently no actual personal effects, and that...well, if you want your home to scream 'ninja with no life', ask them for decorating tips."

"Point taken," the Fourth said. "I suppose, as long as going into deep cover isn't necessary, they can be effective spies. While we are on the subject of free thought and initiative, well, at least Shikaku was involved too. Good to know you don't need me to hold your hand."

Fugaku did scowl this time. "Understood, Hokage-sama."

"I forgive you." The corner of Minato's mouth twitched upwards momentarily. "I need the Military Police to go on high alert again tomorrow, for similarly vague reasons, if doable."


	39. Countering Inner Foes

"I hope you don't need me to explain this to you," Minato told the Kyūbi, tone sardonic, as he strode in. "I might be in a fight tomorrow, and I would prefer you not participate."

The demon briefly flashed a toothy grin. **"You do not want my help then, Yondaime?"**

"No," he answered flatly.

**"Avoid getting in trouble, then,"** the Nine-Tails informed him as it stretched lazily, claws slipping through the bars as it shifted in the confined space. **"The trickles of my chakra in your veins are sufficient for healing minor wounds, but sustain a major injury, or otherwise land yourself in desperate straits, and you call on more of my power."**

"Which would allow you to influence me," the Fourth said. "The seal will weaken as more of your chakra is channelled, but you cannot break it without my making the decision to unlock it. In fact, I could choose to tighten the seal, and prevent you from trying to control me."

**"If you can fight your own survival instincts,"** it replied coolly, tails waving lazily.

"Assuming that some of your power is allowed to leak through, what will it do?" Minato pretended he had not noticed the interest in its eyes at the suggestion. "You would infect me with your anger and hate, as well as heal my injuries. What else?"

The Kyūbi eyed him. **"You already know the answer. Why ask me?"**

"I like to confirm my information with separate sources."

**"You get me, obviously,"** it retorted.** "All of my abilities, limited by the amount of my chakra you are channelling – and I suppose this would be a good time to warn you that you are at risk of dying anyway, simply because you cannot bear my immense power."**

"Great," Minato remarked sarcastically. "You want to keep me alive, but you could kill me by accident while doing so."

It glowered at him. **"You are the one who needs to be careful, Yondaime,"** the demon fox eventually snarled.** "If I die, I can be reborn with time. Learn some manners, or you should not bother to try speaking with me again."** It withdrew, shadows falling to obscure everything.

He regarded the brooding darkness for a few moments. "I don't have time for this," the man finally muttered, and turned away, allowing the night to claim him.


	40. Countering Expectations

As the bird-masked ANBU agent shut the door behind him, Danzō turned to regard the room, where the young Hokage sat surrounded by report scrolls, wearing his red-trimmed cloak over jōnin attire – ready for battle. He himself wore battle gear beneath his robes much like the Sandaime often did, though, so he chose not to regard it as an overt sign of imminent combat.

"Danzō," the Fourth greeted him, giving nothing away with his soft voice. "Have a seat." The older man duly did so, pouring himself a cup of tea.

They regarded each other, expressions deceptively mild. "I am going to have most of the active Root operatives in Fire Country pulled off their current missions," the Hokage informed him plainly, the way he addressed shinobi about their assignments routinely. "The instigator of the Kyūbi attack needs to be found, and he is more likely to be in Mizu no Kuni than within Konoha's walls, so I am reassigning them."

Shimura Danzō had to admit, he did not expect that. He quickly schooled his expression.

Minato gave a tiny, wry smile. "We could talk about the rest of the matters at hand. About how you and yours were not present during the attack. About the disaster that was the incident with the Ame rebels. About how you would like nothing better than to replace me as Hokage, and care not about the means by which you accomplish your goals."

"What would you do about it, Hokage-sama?" He kept his tone calm and level.

"No, what are _you_ going to do, Danzō," the young leader returned. "You are going to have a talk with me about all of it. You will then continue to help me with all of it. Sandaime-sama preferred to leave you to the shadows; I would rather know what I am condoning."

The Yondaime rose to his feet, stepping away to draw a fresh blank scroll from one of the shelves. Danzō took a moment to consider the entire situation in a new light, sipping his tea. He knew Minato would never agree to some of the more dubious operations Root needed to be involved in, even given this revelation that the young man had more backbone than Hiruzen. Still, dealing with the threat of the masked Uchiha was of higher priority than trying to hide the secrets which would likely be exposed sooner or later.

"We have a great deal to discuss, Hokage-sama."

"Yes, we do. You might start by telling me about your arm; I asked one of the ANBU to take a look at you, and he reported some very interesting things to me."


	41. Fighting Personal Feelings

Jiraiya was not familiar with the young man who had just walked into the Hokage's office, but he could read from the set jaw and cold eyes that he did not bring good news. Seated beside the desk, Sarutobi-sensei apparently agreed with this assessment, judging by his grim expression. "Genma-san," he greeted brusquely.

The Platoon member bowed. "I bear news and instructions from Yondaime Hokage-sama," Genma stated, his voice clipped and emotionless. "Orochimaru is to be brought in for questioning, with regards to his possible involvement with Root and with the disappearance of four shinobi of Konoha."

"Orochimaru?" Jiraiya repeated, shocked and indignant. Minato had given them the general overview of his business with Danzō before closeting himself inside his other office with the old war hawk, but the idea of his old teammate being stirred up in this affair was unexpected.

"There will be a time for explanations," Genma replied. His mostly-hidden, almost nervous anger was something of a substitute for the immovable calm Minato would be wearing were he here in person. "Sandaime-sama, the Fourth would like to request that you keep watch over Naruto." The old man eyed him sharply, but nodded.

"Jiraiya-sama" the young man turned to address him "the Fourth asks that you stand guard over Danzō while the situation is being resolved."

"I'll do that," he agreed, heading for the door. It was obvious to him that Minato was suggesting he avoid confrontation with Orochimaru, relegating him to a job he was over-qualified for. The thought brought on a harsh conflict of emotion; as much as Jiraiya would prefer to avoid involvement if things went south, it stung, that his former student had simply taken matters out of his hands without informing him in person.

Then again, if he had been allowed the choice, he might have elected to face his old friend himself, and who knew how that would have turned out. _This is why I do not want to be Hokage, ever._


	42. Fighting Orochimaru

Crane followed his commander down the passageway. Minato had briefed them on the generalities – that Orochimaru stood accused of crimes even hardened shinobi would flinch from, and that they were here to confirm or refute those accusations. Daifune did not know what to believe or to hope for; he would simply do whatever was required, when the time came.

Sweat glued Bear's shoulder-length brown hair to the back of her neck as she walked briskly alongside Crane. If it did come to a fight, Kasumi knew she and her squad mates were not much of a threat to the most powerful of the Sannin; but she had not become kunoichi only to flee from bad odds, and having the Yellow Flash on their side evened out any playing field, regardless.

Senri stayed at the rear; medics avoided being caught in the fray unless it proved necessary. _It just figures. Only the Yondaime Hokage can make walking through a sewer look dramatic._ The thought, however, did nothing to improve the scowl concealed behind his dragon mask; one major crisis a year was quite enough.

Guided by the old markings on the tunnel walls, they arrived at the entrance to the abandoned safe room – having avoided or disabled several traps along the way. The Fourth kicked the door open, and was met by a chuckle echoing in the dimly lit interior, as well as the unmistakeable odour of rotting flesh.

Orochimaru looked at them from across the room, a body on the slab between them. The sleeves of his jōnin uniform were rolled up to the elbow, and the long white fingers wet with blood. His gaunt face wore a small smirk. "Yondaime-sama... What brings you down here this fine afternoon?"

The gaze Minato cast at him and at the room was devoid of emotion. He did not reply.

"To business, then," Orochimaru hissed. For a man caught red-handed with the corpses of his comrades, he looked rather cheerful. "I take it Danzō no longer requires my services?"

"Perhaps," the young Hokage said coolly. "Would you care to explain" a small wave of the hand encompassed everything in the chamber "why?"

"Death is such a tedious obstacle," the legendary shinobi answered. "You're a clever man, Yondaime-sama" his tone was briefly mocking "you can understand. I want to explore, to learn and make all the jutsu this world offers...and a mortal lifespan is simply not enough."

"I might understand," the Fourth remarked, "if you can answer why. What do you want more power for, Orochimaru?"

The other man lifted an eyebrow. "Whatever I want. I can have it, so I will, not bound by petty morals or needing sentimental reasons like you f-"

Three kunai flew at Orochimaru, whose arms raised in response; twin streams of snakes shot from within his sleeves, knocking the kunai off-course, baring yellow fangs. The Yondaime vanished; green fire flared around Dragon's hands as Bear and Crane's katana flashed before them, decapitating serpents in mid-air.

Minato blinked back into existence right next to Orochimaru, kunai blade already slamming straight between the older man's ribs; his opponent snarled soundlessly, dissolving into a swarm of pythons, and he disappeared once more.

One of the larger snakes swiftly disgorged its master, who wielded a _jian_ in one hand; with it he parried the blow Crane tried to land, dashing out the door.

The Fourth reappeared beside Dragon as the other two ANBU took off down the passageway after their foe; he shut the door, sealed and marked it, then grasped Dragon by the wrist. Both men flickered away, using the _hiraishin no jutsu_ to re-join the chase.

* * *

><p>Emerging from the concealed exit, Orochimaru quickly left the dead-end alley, leaping up onto the roof of the nearest house. The Earth Release Shadow Clone would not mislead his pursuers for long; he set a direct course for the edge of town, hoping Konoha in general was unaware of the situation.<p>

A pair of shinobi wearing the insignia of the Military Police headed towards him. "Orochimaru-sama," one of them called. "Yondaime-sama has-"

Not bothering to wait, he hit them both with the Temporary Paralysis Technique. One young man froze between steps; the other dissolved into smoke, and a shrill whistle went up from the street below. Orochimaru threw himself into a _shunshin_, reappearing some way ahead, disgorging his sword in a single swift motion.

Two more pairs of ninja ran towards him from different directions, flinging shuriken and kunai while still a respectable distance away. Orochimaru flicked his fingers, and the Kusanagi no Tsurugi, dancing unsupported in mid-air, deflected most of the projectiles; the rest scattered harmlessly around him, and he hurriedly shaped the hand seals for a jutsu upon noticing the tag attached to one of the kunai.

Orochimaru spun on the spot as he unleashed the Wind Release: Great Breakthrough, and felt the barest whisper of a touch upon his shoulder before being rewarded with a vanishing flicker of white, blue and yellow.

_Oh, damn._ The Yellow Flash had almost certainly marked him, though he was unlikely to take advantage of it quite so soon, having already been surprised by the wind jutsu. He had to do something, though, or Minato would take him out at the first opportune-

Honestly, sometimes Orochimaru felt that he lived for these moments of brilliantly clear insight.

* * *

><p>Given Minato's propensity for employing the assistance of fellow shinobi in seeding battlefields with marked kunai, most of Konoha was by now aware of the basic concept upon which the <em>hiraishin no jutsu<em> operated. Senri did not approve, of course.

Granted, the majority of ninja had yet to figure out how to counter the technique, much less reverse-engineer it, but it just figured that of all the opponents they could have had, the one they actually had to deal with would fall into the much more cunning minority.

He stayed some way behind the main pursuit, the Fourth beside him. Crane and Bear leaped ahead of him, matching Orochimaru's pace. The other shinobi involved were maintaining a healthy distance; they would hardly slow the Sandaime's star pupil, after all. Uchiha Fugaku and one of his men had not got the memo about what Minato thought of senseless sacrifice, though, and were coming in at an angle, using _shunshin_ to rapidly close the distance.

Orochimaru abruptly dropped down out of sight behind the rooftops, and the two Uchiha were the only ones immediately able to follow. The renegade shinobi leapt back into view within moments, sword held in reverse grip and gleaming red; neither Uchiha followed, and Senri experienced a brief flicker of anger before Fugaku reappeared – right in Orochimaru's path, tantō poised to strike.

The serpentine shinobi jerked, slowed, turning to dodge sideways; the _jian_ flashed as he jabbed behind him, and the Fourth Hokage, spiralling sphere of blue light in hand, blinked into existence before him, already moving to land the blow.

Fugaku ran Minato through with his sword, even as Orochimaru's body contorted, twisting sideways so that the Rasengan passed through empty air instead of his ribcage.

Orochimaru flickered into another _shunshin_, Fugaku vanished in white smoke to be replaced by a second Orochimaru, Minato landed clumsily on hands and knees, the Rasengan dissipating, and the tantō yanked itself from the Yondaime's body, shedding the _henge_ upon it to reveal itself as the Kusanagi as it flew back to its owner.

A heavily mud- and blood-splattered Fugaku leapt into view from the site where Orochimaru had previously broken their line of sight, and his vehement curse carried easily across the distance to Dragon, even as the medic-nin dashed forward to his Hokage.

Several of the distant shinobi closed in on Orochimaru with cries of outrage; he downed one of them instantly as he put on a burst of speed to break out of the circle; his _kage bunshin_ lasted a few seconds and two ninja died with it, even as a flock of crows mobbed the real Orochimaru.

Crouching beside the Fourth – who now lay on his side – as he readied healing chakra in his hands, Senri hesitated at the sight of pale orange chakra bubbling out over the jinchūriki's skin, enveloping his body. He tried to shift the wounded man to get a look at the no doubt grievous injury, then jerked his hands back and applied his gathered chakra to himself; that yellow-orange energy _burned_.

Minato's eyes snapped open, and they were vivid crimson. He glanced around swiftly, and vanished.

A wind jutsu scattered the crows and people around Orochimaru, just in time to offer everyone present a view of a glowing orange-shrouded figure smiting the greatest of the Sannin; the single blow sent its victim crashing down on the rooftop, blood splattering across the brick-red shingles.

Orochimaru writhed and lashed out, his sword slashing at the Hokage. The chakra surrounding the Yondaime deflected Kusanagi, even as he shaped a swirling orb of purplish power and slammed it into his opponent's face.

* * *

><p>To be honest, Fugaku was not quite sure what had happened. He had followed Orochimaru down to street level, where the fleeing jōnin had raised an Earth Clone and two Shadow Clones. The <em>doton bunshin<em> had engaged Fugaku immediately; he glimpsed the _kage bunshin_ transforming themselves into a replica of Kusanagi and Fugaku himself, but had been too busy dodging blows to do something about it.

He had gotten away in a few moments – though his fellow Uchiha Akai had not – and leapt back onto roof level in time to see his doppelganger stab Minato.

There was a lot of noise and motion; he vaguely recalled snarling something uncomplimentary as he charged forward, before Orochimaru's fūton jutsu drove them back, and the Yondaime had reassured everyone he was alive by grinding his would-be killer into bloody paste.

If that was the Yondaime. A layer of light yellow light, moderately streaked with dark red and black, coated the man's skin and clothes, the edges flickering fiery orange; a single lithe tail of chakra waved lazily, a pair of pointed appendages tried to approximate fox ears (but looked more like rabbit), and the seemingly solid energy sheathed Minato's hands and feet in clawed paws. The Fourth remained crouched over the corpse of his foe, blinking red eyes as he stared at his blood-splattered hands (claws).

In the general stunned silence, Fugaku warily approached, noting as he did so the whisker marks upon Minato's face, the glimpse of elongated canines in his slightly open mouth, the patches of exposed fle- he gritted his teeth and fought the sudden surge of nausea; the man's skin was slowly disintegrating in patches, blood mingling with the chakra shroud.

"Mi-Minato," he said shakily. The Uchiha barely noticed that three ANBU operatives had joined them, one moving to block his way. The other two held back, uncertain.

The Fourth shuddered, and the chakra receded into him, fading from mundane sight. Fugaku's Sharingan watched the seal's light shine brighter as the Kyūbi's influence was smothered, flaring and fading almost to nothing in fits and jerks.

Minato's eyes widened, and his breathing, already ragged, now sounded tight and harsh. Fugaku thought it sounded like the man wanted to scream, but could not find the air to do so.

A young Uchiha approached. "My partner's sprinting straight for the hospital with a marked kunai," he hesitantly offered.

"Good," the tallest and thinnest of the masked shinobi answered with a curt nod. They moved to form a circle around the Fourth, whose face was twisted into a grimace as he struggled to focus on them. His eyes caught Fugaku's gaze, and in a blink he was standing between the Uchiha and the ANBU members, one hand on each of their shoulders.

Fugaku saw the stab wound right over Minato's heart, and the fresh red dying his flak jacket, right before their surroundings turned pitch black, to be replaced by the emergency room.


	43. Fighting a Patient to Heal Him

A flurry of movement erupted around Hitatsu as the group of shinobi appeared. The muddy, battered Uchiha and one of the ANBU caught the Fourth Hokage even as he collapsed; two of the other iryō-nin present helped place the unconscious man on the nearest bed, while another questioned the newcomers; the Uchiha Head and the dragon-masked operative answered in short, clipped phrases.

Hyūga Hitatsu, for his part, already had his Byakugan active; it would probably never see beyond the basic fifty-metre range, but few could match his capacity for taking in complex details while maintaining the focus needed for delicate healing.

"The patient's chakra is fluctuating wildly," he observed calmly. There would be time later to ask the Yondaime what on earth he had done to himself, the Hyūga hoped. "It will be difficult to treat him, especially when the severity of the injuries and the fading presence of the demon are taken into account."

One of his assistants was already making preliminary preparations – cutting away the clothing to expose the wound, taking the vital signs and using her skills to attempt to regulate them. Hitatsu drew a little chakra into his fingertips, sealing specific meridians to ensure his patient would not feel pain, or worse, awaken prematurely.

The Uchiha had his Sharingan active and a strange, grim look on his face. Hitatsu turned to face the Clan Head, a deliberate gesture rather than actual necessity. Following his gaze, the crane-masked ANBU agent hesitated, and spoke. "Uchiha-sama, do what you can."

The other operatives remained silent, and they withdrew to give the iryō-nin space, save Dragon; he stayed where he was, apparently as an observer and guard.

Hitatsu beckoned the Clan Head over, and they quickly settled themselves on either side of the bed. The Uchiha gingerly slid open the man's eyelids to make eye contact. Hitatsu placed his palms over the stab wound, and set about trying to work around the disruptive ripples of chakra in order to heal the injuries. If his patient's chakra was not successfully calmed, though, there was going to be little he could do.


	44. Fighting Questions and Answers

Fugaku shivered. It had little to do with the sudden double-vision of his enhanced sight; he was actually using his Sharingan on (against?) the Hokage.

Minato's dark gold chakra was rippling and spiking violently; the _other_ chakra flickered like dying embers. The Hyūga was sharp, pale jade delicately threading in, but making little headway through the gold. He saw the tangled energies, the physical blood and torn cloth, yet-

-the Uchiha also saw a hall of stone, rumbling ominously. He felt that he struggled through knee-deep water or mud, knew somehow that battle raged behind the walls-

-and the translucent, vermillion form of the Kyūbi no Yoko towered over him, bubbling and shifting fitfully. **"Why are you here, Uchiha?"** it snarled suspiciously.

"You talk?!" was the first thing out of Fugaku's mouth (_no shit, genius,_ he thought).

The Uchiha could have sworn the demon gave him a flat look. He took a moment to think (scream? Run? Attack?). "I don't know," the clan leader replied somewhat belligerently; he showed fear to no one, dammit. "You got a name?"

The Nine-Tails stared at him in shock – and a flare of chakra shattered the scene.

When the scene refocused, Fugaku found that it had changed into a larger cavern, and crouched behind an ornate set of gates – the intricate seal structure was beyond his ability to decipher, though simple manipulation might be possible - the Kyūbi, now very solid-looking, was regarding him with an odd expression. **"You are the first human who ever thought to ask my name."**

_I was just trying to be an ass, actually. I thought your answer was going to be "I'm the Nine-Tailed Demon Fox!" or something along those lines._ "What just happened?" he asked instead, flinching as the ground shuddered beneath him. "...What is he fighting?"

**"The Yondaime is overreacting,"** the Kyūbi answered in a long-suffering tone of voice. **"He appears to be unaware that I am in no danger of escaping, despite our little bit of fun. Do stop him so we can talk sometime, Uchiha, assuming we get the opportunity."**

Minato's chakra did seem to be attempting an ouroboros impression. He suspected he knew what the 'mud' flooding the hall was. "...You want to talk to me later?"

"Fugaku? ...What are you doing here?"


	45. Fighting Uncertainty

Fugaku turned to see an exhausted, confused man, soaking wet with the dark fluid that flooded the stone hall. The shadows were darkening, and the prickling unease in the air did not help. _I am so out of my depth, it's not even funny._

"Do you _know_ what you're doing to yourself?" he asked sharply, striding (sloshing) over to the Fourth. Was it Minato's self-perception or the influence of Fugaku's own preference that made the other man's eyes look blue, in this mental scape?

The half-dead expression Fugaku got said it all: he either did not know, or did not care.

Glancing uncertainly between the Kyūbi and the Hokage – physically he continued to sit still and silent beside Minato's unconscious, bloodied form – he huffed in frustration.

**"Just get it over with, Uchiha,"** the demon muttered. **"Assuming you _are_ Uchiha and know how to use those accursed eyes of yours."**

Fugaku did not reply that he had no idea what to do, because the Nine-Tails' words had just made that untrue. Facing the Yondaime squarely, he put a tone of authority in his voice. "Minato – look into my eyes."

Technically the flesh-and-blood him was already doing so, but the imagery helped the Uchiha focus, as he used his Sharingan to manipulate the chakra, forcing it to slow and settle into a more natural rhythm. He didn't dare push it too hard; this was in principle similar to genjutsu which put the target to sleep, but he was no master of the art.

Minato's eyes widened, his shoulders slumped, and then he simply keeled over.

The Hyūga said something about the condition stabilising, and fine threads of mint green were gently suffusing Minato's body, repairing the damage, so it seemed to have worked.

In the chamber containing the Kyūbi, Fugaku caught the Yondaime as he fell, and laid him down on the fluid's surface. He paused to take a deep breath, and turned to regard the demon fox. "You still haven't told me your name."

**"You haven't introduced yourself either, Uchiha,"** the Kyūbi replied, looking thoughtful. **"Nor do I give away my name lightly."**

Fugaku sighed. _I don't have the energy to do this right now._ "Perhaps we could get to know each other properly another day, then, if you'll excuse me." The fox snorted, and the scene vanished as he deactivated his Sharingan.

He made to lean backwards, realised his chair had no back, and opted to slump tiredly against the wall instead. Minato's blood was drying on his fingertips.


	46. On Speaking with Care

Their lack of response was somewhat unnerving, Fugaku thought to himself. Shikaku and Te had continued their game of shogi as he recounted what had happened, with only the Nara asking him to clarify a detail just the once. The Jōnin Commander maintained his usual amiable, thoughtful silence throughout.

"Troublesome," Shikaku finally remarked, moving a piece on the board.

"What do you mean, troublesome?" the Uchiha growled. Honestly, only the Inuzuka hound seemed worried. To be fair, he did not actually know what kind of response he was expecting; he was telling the two men about how he had spoken to the Nine-Tails only because Mikoto had pointed out that if he did not, questions would soon be asked anyway.

Shikaku shrugged. "Sorry. I say that a lot." He paused, considering, as he glanced out at the shadows surrounding the veranda. "The Kyūbi is intelligent. Despite also being a walking calamity...well, granted, that description applies to quite a few shinobi."

Te looked unimpressed; Fugaku supposed that for Inuzuka, intelligent non-humans being central to their lifestyle, such a revelation would have little impact. "I doubt it would really change our approach to the demon, especially since he's safe and nonthreatening where he is," the Uchiha pointed out.

"True," the Nara agreed. "It's still worth exploring, though. When Yondaime-sama wakes up, we need to discuss this with him. It's fortunate that you were there with him earlier."

"I...suppose," Fugaku said, even as he thought of how he had seen 'himself' attack Minato. And what some people might have thought of that.

Shikaku made a small noise. "You might have saved his life, Fugaku, that's all I'm saying."

There was silence, broken by a baby's cry somewhere within the house. "My son, Shikamaru," Shikaku said, in response to their questioning glances. "He was born just three weeks ago."

"Congratulations." Fugaku smiled briefly. "My second son will be entering the Academy at the same time as Shikamaru, then."

"As well as my grandson Kiba," Te put in. The Uchiha thought that might have been the first time he had spoken for most of the evening.

The silence that followed, this time, was relatively companionable.


End file.
